A/C frustrations

[Joshua993]

I took my 88 62 to get the A/C charged, which has been converted to R134 by the PO, or so the mechanic told me. When I picked up the truck and turned the A/C on for the first time it made a bit of a ruckus, and didn't blow cool at all. I made it a block away and was turning around to go back when I heard a pop and a whistle from under the hood, and had white mist fogging out around the front end. Once back to the shop, compressor oil was dripping out underneath.

Has anyone had this happen? I first thought that it had been overcharged, maybe too much Pag - or maybe even whoever tried to convert it only changed to fittings and not the dessicant. I am not a/c literate at all. Any thoughts?

Thx in advance.
JT

 

[hank14]

What did the mechanic say? He's (or she's ???) going to have a hard time explaining that one!

 

[Texx]

You definitely have an issue with the "mechanic". Hopefully you immediately made the block and returned the poorly executed job to him. A pop and a fog around the front end could indicate a burst hose, which wouldn't necessarily be his fault, a hole in the condensor, ditto, or other leak. You definitely lost refrigerant. More to the point, he should have never let it out of his door if it wasn't blowing cold. A/C issues can be complex...the conversion shouldn't necessarily be suspect, although I don't think 134 ever blows as cold as R12. Demand an answer.

 

[1972FJ55]

It could be the discharge hose went boom or possibly the blow-off valve opened to release the pressure. It could have been overcharged.

 

[Michael Hanson]

Sounds like a over charged it

 

[Joshua993]

Got the call from the "mechanic" today. He said the hose to the coil split. So - Maybe it wasn't his fault, maybe it was. The fact that it wasn't blowing cold to start with should have told them something. Now, he wants to charge me $244 to fix it, which includes a discounted evac at $30.00. I am looking the place up the Better Business Bureau website now.

 

[Texx]

Well you're in a conundrum there, hoses do go bad, especially in units that aren't in use. It's a gotcha kinda deal, you can bitch, you won't get a refund, won't have cold air, and won't have the hose replaced. You can bit the bullett for the extra 250 and hope for the best...I'd definitely question the labor and see if he can "help you out" since it's basically a redo (which may not have been his fault). Invest in a temp guage you can stick in the vent at autozone or some such for 6 or 7 bucks. Even sitting still, you should see the temp down to 55. If not, you have a legit complaint. Do it in front of him when you pick the truck up, or just ask him, "what's the temp at the vents down to?" That's based on the air around here, which is near 100 every day. As you might imagine with daily tems around here between 95 and 108 or so, I've been to the a/c guy with nearly every rig I've had. He's not NECESSARILY trying to put the screws to you, but the "not cold" air the first go round is certainly suspect There ain't much evac to do....it's all blown out. All he has to do now is replace the hose, pull a vacuum and recharge.